ai4bharat/Pralekha huggingface dataset:
Ministry of Agriculture &
Farmers Welfare
Reducing Dependency on Agricultural Imports
India’s agricultural imports are mainly dominated by vegetable oils, pulses, cashew nuts, fresh fruits and spices. To reduce dependency on imported pulses and edible oils, Government has been implementing various programmes such as National Food Security Mission  and NFSM-Oilseeds & Oil Palm, to improve the production of pulses and essential edible oils in the country. Besides, under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana , funds are being provided to states for improving the production of pulses. To address high import of turmeric, steps are being taken to organize cultivation of varieties with high curcumin content in clusters in suitable areas. To meet the growing demand of raw cashew nuts in the country, the government seeks to increase the area with high yielding varieties, high density planting, rejuvenation of senile orchards, canopy management, etc.
During 2019-20 the import of Agri commodities was 19.91 USD Billion and the import of vegetable oils constituted the largest share i.e. 48%. The import of vegetable oils was undertaken with a view to bridge the gap between domestic demand and supply. The Government has been implementing Centrally Sponsored Scheme, National Food Security Mission  in the country. This mission comprises of three Sub missions namely, NFSM-Oil Seeds, NFSM-Oil palm and NFSM- Tree Born Oil seeds  being implemented through Agriculture and Horticulture departments of State Governments. A special programme on Targeting Rice Fallow Area  and special programme on rapeseeds & mustard have also been initiated in ten States.
With a view to ensure self-sufficiency in agriculture, Government is also implementing several flagship schemes namely, scheme of distribution of Soil Health Cards to farmers so that the use of fertilizers can be rationalized; “Per drop more crop” initiative under which drip/sprinkler irrigation is being encouraged for optimal utilization of water, reducing cost of inputs and increasing productivity; “Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana ” is being implemented for promoting organic farming; Under e-NAM initiative farmers are being provided an electronic transparent and competitive online trading platform; Under “Har Medh Par Ped”, agro forestry is being promoted for additional income; Bee keeping has been promoted under Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture  to increase the productivity of crops through pollination and increase the honey production as an additional source of income to farmers.
This information was given in a written reply by the Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Shri Narendra Singh Tomar in Lok Sabha.
Prime Minister's Office
PM condoles the passing away of noted singer Shri Bhupinder Singh
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has expressed deep grief over the passing away of noted singer Shri Bhupinder Singh.
In a tweet, the Prime Minister said;
"Anguished by the passing away of Shri Bhupinder Singh Ji, who has given memorable songs for decades. His works struck a chord with several people. In this sad hour, my thoughts are with his family and admirers. Om Shanti."
President's Secretariat
President of India Addresses a Seminar on the ‘Role of Key Constitutional Functionaries of Rajasthan Legislature in Strengthening Democracy’ At Jaipur
The President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu addressed a seminar on the ‘Role of key constitutional functionaries of Rajasthan Legislature in Strengthening Democracy' at Jaipur this evening . This Seminar was organized by the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly under the auspices of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association  to celebrate the birth centenary of Shri Bhairon Singh Shekhawat.
Speaking on the occasion, the President said that Shri Bhairon Singh Shekhawat has left an indelible mark of his towering personality not only in the politics of Rajasthan but the whole country. As the Chief Minister of Rajasthan, he envisioned and implemented many schemes for the development of the state and for the welfare of people. As the Vice-President of India, he carried out the high traditions of the Indian Parliament and also enriched them. He played an important role in shaping the destiny of Rajasthan and the country. His ideals are exemplary for all the people's representatives of our country.
The President said that the democratic system in India is continuously getting stronger. Our country has been moving forward in its developmental journey with democratic methods while incorporating the world’s largest diversity. During the 75 years since independence, our country has kept its democratic values strong while facing all the challenges. She said that the biggest proof of the vibrancy of our democracy is the general elections. In the 17th Lok Sabha elections in 2019, 61.3 crore voters used their franchise, which was a record. She noted that for the first time, the number of women parliamentarians has crossed the 100 mark. She expressed confidence that this number would increase further.
The President said that in our democratic system, representation has been provided to all the people of society, especially the backward and weaker sections and women. The Panchayati Raj system is playing a fundamental role in our democracy. Today, out of more than 31.5 lakh elected representatives in more than 2.75 lakh local rural bodies, 46 percent are women.
The President said that the people of Rajasthan as well as their representatives have played an important role in the success of Indian democracy. She was confident that the people of Rajasthan would strengthen the values of parliamentary democracy and would continue to contribute in the development of the state and the country.
Please click here to see the President's Speech
Ministry of Coal
Coal stocks at power plants increase by 77% to 34.25 MT: Pralhad Joshi
Coal stocks at power plants peaked to 34.25 million tonnes on January 26, equivalent to 19 days’ consumption, and up by 77% as against 19.36 million tonnes, equivalent to 12 days’ consumption at the same time last year.
“Thrust has been also given to augment coal supplies to non-power sector by holding regular auction for coal linkages where the consumers have been given the flexibility to choose nearest mine, quality  etc. To facilitate easy availability of coal to all the sectors, Coal Companies are also offering increased coal under spot and exclusive e-auction.” Union Coal Minister Shri Pralhad Joshi said in a reply in the Rajya Sabha.
The Minister informed that various steps have been taken to ensure the easy and adequate availability of coal to every coal dependent industries/Power Sector. The power houses in close vicinity of the coalfields were offered coal for enhanced lifting of coal through captive mode , Merry-go-Round  etc.) and roadmodes.For augmentation of supplies, the power houses were advised to move coal through Goods Sheds by Road-cum-Rail mode.Efforts were made to enhance supplies through captive modes of transport like MGR, Belts, Ropeways etc.Supplies of coal to power houses through all modes wereprioritized.Rationalization of Linkages were ensured to reduce transportationcost.
The Coal and Mines Minister further added that the recentlypromulgated ‘Mineral Laws  Ordinance, 2020' has brought amendment in the Mines and Minerals  Act, 1957  and the Coal Mines  Act, 2015 [CMSP Act] to allow wider participation and competition in auctions. The companies which do not possess any prior coal mining experience in India can now participate in auction of coal blocks. Any company selected through auction/allotment can carry on coal mining operation for own consumption, sale or for any other purposes, as may be specified by the Central Government.
The Minister also informed that Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has granted Environmental Clearances to 13 coal projects during calendar year 2019. About 4 to 6 billion tonnes of proved coal resources are added in a year and the proved coal resources in the country are about 155.6 billion tonnes as on April 1, 2019.
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
COVID-19 UPDATE
217.41 cr Total Vaccine doses  have been administered so far under Nationwide Vaccination Drive
14,76,840 doses administered in last 24 hours
India's Active caseload currently stands at 44,436
Active cases stand at 0.10%
Recovery Rate currently at 98.71%
5,719 recoveries in the last 24 hours increases Total Recoveries to
4,39,90,414
4,912 new cases recorded in the last 24 hours
Daily positivity rate 
Weekly Positivity Rate 
89.33 cr Total Tests conducted so far; 3,03,888 tests conducted in the last 24 hours
Ministry of Culture
Shri Prahlad Singh Patel takes part in the 32nd Foundation Day Celebrations of Indira Gandhi National Center for Arts, New Delhi
Union Minister of State for Culture and Tourism Shri Prahlad Singh Patel took part in the 32nd Foundation Day Celebrations at Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts as chief guest today in New Delhi. Speaking on the occasion Shri Patel said that IGNCA has great significance for it plays the role of preserving the dying forms of art and culture. He also released 20 new books and 6 DVDs on this occasion. The function was attended by Joint Secretary,Smt. Nirupama Kotru, DG National Gallery of Modern Art, Shri Adwait Gadnayak and member secretory IGNCA, Dr. Sachchidanad Joshi among others.
Exhibitions have also been organised on this occasion. The first exhibition is based on Mahatma Gandhi in which oil paintings of Elizabeth Sass Brunner and her daughter Elizabeth Brunner are displayed. Thee paintings were made between 1932 to 1961. Another photo exhibition is of DRD Wadia and Shambhu Shah who photographed many life aspects of Mahatma Gandhi. Another exhibition focuses on the Teeji festival,Teeji is the important festival of the Mustang region of Nepal and Tibet which is based on the victory of good over evil. Further most celebrated Indian pianoaccord artist Enoch Denials showcased his flawless performance.
IGNCA is celebrating its Foundation day with week long series of programs which consist of classical music performances, seminars, workshops, film festivals, exhibitions and Book releases.
Prime Minister's Office
PM condoles loss of lives due to collapse of a structure in Malad West, Mumbai
Announces ex gratia for the victims
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has condoled the loss of lives due to the collapse of a structure in Malad West, Mumbai
The Prime Minister tweeted:
“Pained by the loss of lives due to the collapse of a structure in Malad West, Mumbai. In this hour of grief, my thoughts are with the bereaved families. I pray that the injured recover at the earliest: PM @narendramodi”
The Prime Minister announced ex-gratia of Rs. 2 lakh each from the PMNRF for the next of kin of those who have lost their lives. Rs. 50,000 would be provided to those injured.
Ministry of Agriculture &
Farmers Welfare
ICAR-CCARI, Goa organized webinar on "VEGFASTTM technology to increase the vegetable production in coastal regions” on 15th June 2021
Panaji, June 17, 2021
In commemoration of India's 75 years of Independence as Bharat Ka Amrut Mahotsav, ICAR-Central Coastal Agricultural Research Institute, Goa conducted webinar on "VEGFASTTM technology to increase the vegetable production in coastal regions” on 15 June 2021 which was presented by Er. Sukhwinder Singh, Principal Scientist, ICAR-CPRS, Jalandhar . The VEGFASTTM technology is one of the trade mark technology for urban gardening developed by ICAR-Central Potato Research Station, Jalandhar. This promising technology has tremendous scope in the state of Goa, where healthy and fresh vegetables can be grown in the terraces, balconies and rooftops of housing societies, restaurants, hotels and beachfronts. The programme was attended online by 100 stakeholders  in zoom platform  and about 50 participants on Facebook Live from various states of the country.
The Chief Guest of the webinar, Shri Kuldeep Singh Gangar IAS, Secretary , Govt. of Goa lauded the efforts of ICAR-CCARI, Goa in sensing the urgent need of Goa state regarding shortage of vegetable production and emphasized for close collaboration of ICAR-CCARI, Goa and Directorate of Agriculture, Govt. of Goa to boost the vegetable production in the state of Goa. Dr. Parveen Kumar, Director, ICAR-CCARI, Goa, highlighted the need of technologies such as VEGFASTTM for the state of Goa to make Goa self-reliant in vegetables production and reduce its dependence on Karnataka and Maharashtra. Dr. S.K. Pandey, former Director, ICAR-Central Potato Research Institute, Shimla in his remarks emphasized about the initiation of VEGFASTTM technology on pilot project mode in Goa state in collaboration with ICAR-CCARI, Goa. Dr. Shivasharanappa N, Senior Scientist, Dr. R. Solomon Rajkumar, Scientist  and Dr. Chaudhari Ganesh Vasudeo, Scientist  coordinated the webinar.
Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas
IndianOil celebrates World Fisheries Day
Felicitates stakeholders working to protect and improve marine ecosystem
Kolkata; November 23, 2021
IndianOil celebrated World Fisheries Day on November 21 across the country and felicitated key stakeholders from fisheries sector including fishing communities and Government officials.
As a part of the celebrations, Shri Batakrushna Sahoo, a farmer who was conferred Padma Shri in 2020 for his contribution to animal husbandry, was felicitated in Bhubaneswar. Senior officials from various state fisheries departments, members of various fishing associations, boat communities, were also felicitated on the occasion.
SM Vaidya, Chairman, IndianOil said, IndianOil plays a pivotal role in the development of fisheries sector in India by being an energy supplier for them. These celebrations give us an opportunity to work closely with people, understand their energy needs and develop solutions towards of healthy ocean ecosystems for sustainable stocks of fisheries across the globe, Shri Vaidya added.
World Fisheries Day marks a significant day for fisher folk communities who celebrate this day through rallies, workshops, public meetings, cultural dramas, exhibitions and musical shows. Fisher folk in India also demonstrate the importance of maintaining the fisheries of the world along with highlighting the problems like overfishing and mechanization.
Ministry of Home Affairs
Shri Rajnath Singh to chair the Northern Zonal Council meeting to be held at Chandigarh on 12th May
The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh will chair the 28th meeting of the Northern Zonal Council comprising of the States of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, National Capital Territory of Delhi and Union Territory of Chandigarh. The meeting is to be held at Chandigarh on May 12, 2017. The Chief Ministers in the zone, some Ministers, Chief Secretaries and senior officers from the State Governments and Central Government will attend the meeting.
The 27th meeting of the Northern Zonal Council was held at New Delhi on April 25, 2015. In this meeting, 25 items were taken up, out of which 14 items were disposed off. The 17th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Northern Zonal Council was held on the May 26, 2016 at Srinagar to scrutinize the agenda for this meeting. In that meeting 35 agenda items were taken up, out of which 28 items were resolved at the level of the Standing Committee. 18 items  will be taken up for discussion and decisions in the 28th meeting of Northern Zonal Council.
Five Zonal Councils viz. Central, Western, Northern, Southern and Eastern have been established under the State Reorganization Act, 1956. These Zonal Councils are advisory bodies and may discuss any matter in which some or all of the States represented in a Council, or the Union and one or more of the States represented in a Council, have a common interest and advise the Central Government and the Government of each State concerned as to the action to be taken on any such matter. In particular, a Zonal Council may discuss, and make recommendations with regard to any matter of common interest in the field of economic and social planning; any matter concerning border disputes, linguistic minorities or inter-State transport; and any matter connected with, or arising out of, the reorganization of the States.
The Zonal Councils aim to discuss and resolve many substantive issues of development concerning regional interest and national programmes through its consultative mechanism.
Ministry of Culture
Archaeological Survey of India, Mumbai Circle celebrates World Heritage Week
As part of the World Heritage Week Celebration 2022, Archaeological Survey of India, Mumbai Circle celebrated the World Heritage Week at World Heritage Site Elephanta Caves from 19th to 25th November.
To order to sensitize the local administration about preservation and beautification of surroundings of the monument dignitaries from the District Collector office and local panchayat were invited for the inaugural event. Additional Collector of Raigad Shri Amol Yadav, was the Chief Guest of the event. A site seminar was organized in collaboration with St. Xaviers College Mumbai. Students and visitors participated in the seminar led by Prof. Anita Rane- Kothare, Ancient Indian History Culture and Archaeology department and Dr. Rajendra Yadav, Superintendent Archaeologist ASI Mumbai Circle. Historic and cultural significance of Elephanta Island and the caves was discussed in the lectures.
In the series of events that followed in the week, Swachhata Abhiyan at Panhala Fort, Kolhapur and Drawing competition for school children at Satkhani Buruj Alibag were noteworthy. On 20th November, 2022 a workshop on the ‘Art and Architecture of Ambernath Temple’ was organized in collaboration with Asiatic Society of Mumbai. Senior research scholar Dr. Kumud Kanitkar, discussed the architecture of the thousand-year-old temple.
Further a Photo exhibition on the World Heritage Monuments of India and Conservation of Monuments by Archaeological Survey of India Mumbai Circle, was organised from 23rd to 25th November in the premises of the, St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai. Dr. Firoza Godrej, Chairperson Museum Society of Mumbai inaugurated the exhibitions. The special section of the exhibition about two contemporary rulers Peter the great from Russia and founder of Maraatha Swarajya Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was special attraction of the exhibition. The exhibition is organized in collaboration with the Dept. of Ancient Indian History, Culture and Archaeology, St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai Dr. Rajendra Yadav, Superintending Archaeologist, ASI Mumbai Circle, delivered a lecture about the significance of World Heritage Week and works of ASI in the Deccan.
The events of World Heritage Week concluded with Quiz Competition and felicitation of students at St. Xaviers’ College Mumbai.
The convention of World Heritage Week was started by UNESCO and it is celebrated by Archaeological Survey of India every year from 19th to 25th November. The objective of the exhibition is to raise public awareness about the diversity and vulnerability of the world’s heritage sites/Monuments and the efforts required to protect and conserve them. Besides, it is also promoting the conservation and enhancement of the cultural heritage of India for the benefit of the posterity.
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
India continues its streak of shedding Active Caseload as Daily Recoveries continue to outnumber Daily New Cases
Daily New Cases continue to lessen with only 16,375 new positives Recorded in the Last 24 hours
Total number of people infected with New Strain stands at 58
India’s active caseload which has been decreasing continuously stands at 2,31,036 today. This constitutes a paltry 2.23% of Total Positive Cases so far.
This is made possible by daily recoveries outnumbering daily new cases for 39 days in a streak. Against 29,091 people who recovered in the just concluded 24-hour window, India could report only 16,375 new cases maintaining a steady level of testing . A net decline of 12,917 cases has been recorded in the total active cases in last 24 hours.
The daily new cases in India are also on a sustained decline.
The total number of cases infected with the new strain of the novel Coronavirus first reported in the UK now stands at 58.
20 new cases have been identified at NIV Pune.
The INSACOG labs at NCBS InSTEM, Bengaluru, CDFD Hyderabad, ILS Bhubaneswar, and NCCS Pune have so far found no mutant virus.
|
|
No.
|
|
Institute/Lab
|
|
Under
|
|
Persons detected with new COVID strain
|
|
1
|
|
NCDC New Delhi
|
|
MoHFW
|
|
8
|
|
2
|
|
IGIB New Delhi
|
|
CSIR
|
|
11
|
|
3
|
|
NIBMG Kalyani 
|
|
DBT
|
|
1
|
|
4
|
|
NIV Pune
|
|
ICMR
|
|
25
|
|
5
|
|
CCMB Hyderabad
|
|
CSIR
|
|
3
|
|
6
|
|
NIMHANS Bengaluru
|
|
MoHFW
|
|
10
|
|
TOTAL
|
|
58
The positive samples are being tested at 10 INSACOG labs across the country  for genome sequencing.
All these persons have been kept in single room isolation in designated Health Care facilities by respective State Governments. Their close contacts have also been put under quarantine. Comprehensive contact tracing has been initiated for co-travellers, family contacts and others. Genome sequencing on other specimens is going on.
The situation is under careful watch and regular advice is being provided to the States for enhanced surveillance, containment, testing & dispatch of samples to INSACOG labs.
India’s cumulative recoveries have inched closer to the 1 Crore mark. The total recovered cases have crossed 99.75 lakhs  today. This also increases theRecovery Rate to96.32%.
A total of 29,091cases have recovered in the last 24 hours.
82.62% of the new recovered cases are observed to be concentrated in 10 States/UTs.
Maharashtra has reported the maximum number of single day recoveries with 10,362 recoveries.Kerala follows with 5,145 new recoveries. Chhattisgarh recorded 1,349 daily recoveries.
Ten States/UTs have contributed 80.05% of the new cases.
Maharashtra reported 4,875 cases in the last 24 hours. Kerala recorded 3,021 new cases while Chhattisgarh reported 1,147 daily cases yesterday.
70.15% of the 201case fatalities that have been reported in the past 24 hours are from Ten States/UTs.
14.42% of new fatalities reported are from Maharashtra which reported 29 deaths. West Bengaland Punjab also saw a fatality count of 25 and 24 contributing another 12.44% and 11.94% of the fatalities.
Ministry of Home Affairs
CISF makes the nation proud by winning 5 Gold, 3 Silver and 2 Bronze Medals in World Police and Fire Games at Chengdu, China
The World Police and Fire Games are an Olympic-style competition with 10,000 athletes representing law enforcement, firefighters, and officers from corrections, probation, border protection, immigration and customs from 70+ countries across the world competing in 60+ sports. The World Police and Fire Games-2019 was held from 08-18 August, 2019 at Chengdu, China wherein CISF sports personnel represented India in different sporting events and won ten  medals.
On 21.08.2019, Shri Rajesh Ranjan, DG, CISF felicitated sports personnel of CISF for their excellent performance in World Police & Fire Games-2019 held at Chengdu, China. As they brought laurels not only to the force but also to the nation by achieving five  Gold, three  Silver & two  Bronze medals in this International Event.
CISF has a comprehensive sports facility that seeks to foster the culture of sports in the Force and to ensure fair and reasonable opportunities to talented sports personnel so that they can fully realise their potential and win laurels for the organisation and the country.
Details of achievements of CISF sports personnel in World Police & Fire Games-2019 are as under:-
|
|
S. No.
|
|
Rank & Name
|
|
Particulars/Events
|
|
Medals
|
|
1.
|
|
L/Insp Kuheli Gangulee
|
|
Rifle 
|
|
Gold-1
Bronze-1
|
|
2.
|
|
L/ASI Jina Devi Chongtham
|
|
Judo 
|
|
Silver-1
|
|
3.
|
|
HC Harmeet
|
|
Judo 
|
|
Gold-1
|
|
4.
|
|
L/HC Meena Kumari Devi
|
|
Boxing 
|
|
Gold-1
|
|
5.
|
|
L/ASI Himani
|
|
Discuss Throw
|
|
Silver-1
|
|
Shotput
|
|
Bronze-1
|
|
6.
|
|
L/HC Sangeeta
|
|
Pole Vault
|
|
Gold-1
|
|
High Jump
|
|
Silver-1
|
|
7.
|
|
HC Ankit Rathi
|
|
Javelin Throw
|
|
Gold-1